There are other things to consider besides the economy. The Arts have been a thing forever precisely because they are a good thing to have for a society, and no

There are other things to consider besides the economy. The Arts have been a thing forever precisely because they are a good thing to have for a society, and not just for entertainment's sake but also to preserve our own history, to continue building the collective culture we take for granted, and on and on. Not to mention that in general an educated populace is better at making decisions than an uneducated one, so even a moderately educated Starbucks barista contributes more to our society than an uneducated one, even if those contributions aren't financial.